...threats to global food supplies. Explain the problem and identify the solutions. Since the world population are increasing continuously, this modern world now faces many threats to global supplies. While food is inadequate in several places, people in developed countries, which have sufficient food supplies, are generating food waste. This essay will introduce the situations and problems about food waste in developed world, then demonstrate solutions, identify and evaluate the problem. In the modern world which food production is expanding, food, especially in developed countries, is easily accessible. Thus, there has been an intense rivalry among food manufacturers and retailers. Special offers, promotions and large portion sizes tempt consumers to spend more food than they actually need. Not only overbuying food, discarding food with little blemished on products also became consumers’ habit. These ill-treatments of food are prevalent among people in developed countries, and such actions finally lead to food waste. (slaght, 2012) The action of developed world consumers leads to household food waste. Food waste in developed countries has significantly increased by approximately 30-40% of food lost to waste over the past years. Unwanted supplies are thrown away to landfill while a lot of people in some countries cannot even afford to access sufficient food supply. Nevertheless, there are solutions to deal with this trouble. Increasing the price of food is the way to...
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...themselves at the crossroad of so many issues – one of them, food waste. It can cost retailers up to 4% of their business revenue (Weber et al., 2011). Given the need to be profitable and competitive throughout the future, this matter cannot continue to be ignored. According Gustavsson et al. (2011), food waste is a global predicament of stunning proportion underlying reasons differs between countries. The author stress out that food waste in industrialized countries is dominated by retail and consumer waste whereby high losses at the post-harvest and processing stage due to spoilage in warm and humid climates resulting from the lack of modern transport and storage infrastructure. Kaye (2011) in his writing states that, despite the rising prices of the commodity, the problem of food waste is not about the supply, but of distribution channel and efficiency. Various factors contribute to food waste. Kaye (2011) comments that American restaurant portions are only proper for a buffet but not a sensible meal; confusing labeling on food products that lead many consumers to dispose food products that are still edible; government regulations that get in the way of donating food to charities; and marketing schemes that encourage the purchase of large quantities that even the most famished households cannot consume before the food spoils. Statistics of Global Food Waste If this problem persist without any measures to be taken, food inflation is going to reach severe high by 2030 and many...
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...About one third of the food produced for consumption is wasted in the world. According to the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO), we live in a world where 840 million people go hungry every day. The United States is a well-developed country and known to be one of the leaders in innovation. The US has machines and production assembly lines that supply goods rapidly and enters them into the market. Industrialized countries, like the United States, produce a surplus of goods, including food, to feed our over consuming society. All the agriculture growing and manipulated by machines attributes to foods’ greenhouse gasses. What happens with the waste is where more problems lead. Landfills are mounting exponentially and natural resources are becoming scarce due to the US wasting 30-40%, equal to $43 Billion, of the food supplied. Those numbers are alarming, seeing that food waste isn’t a mainstream problem yet. The food security issue shouldn’t be focused on increasing production, but more of regulating the wastefulness of the food produced. Most consumers don’t even think twice before throwing away their leftovers or not taking a to-go box at a...
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...minimising food waste in the supply chain of the future Prepared for: CHEP Australia June 2013 Issue: Version: 3.0 3.0 Authors: Dr Karli Verghese Dr Helen Lewis Simon Lockrey Dr Helen Williams Executive summary CONTACT Centre for Design School of Architecture and Design RMIT University GPO Box 2476 Melbourne VIC 3001 Tel: + 61 (03) 9925 3484 Fax: + 61 (03) 9639 3412 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Dr Stephen Clune’s (RMIT) background work into food waste and input into project scope. The research team are also grateful to the stakeholders from the food and packaging supply chain who participated in the interviews. Final report: The role of packaging in minimising food waste in the supply chain of the future Version: 3 Page 1 Executive summary Table of Contents Research Partners ................................................................................................................................ 3 Executive Summary .............................................................................................................................. 4 1 Introduction – the significance of food waste and the role of packaging ........................................ 6 1.1 Research aims and approach .................................................................................................... 6 1.2 Research method ....................................................................................................................... 7 1.3 Food security and waste ......
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...one-third of the food produced goes to waste every year, with most of it ending up in the environment. The food waste is equal to 320,000 jumbo jets worth of food thrown into our environment every year (Cicatiello, 101). Recycling, reusing and reducing wasted food and creation of infrastructures that support these actions through the supply chain can help in feeding the Americans who are food insecure approximated to be 49 million (Cicatiello, 101). Decrease in agricultural stress on the surroundings, and increase in business efficiencies for those either producing or selling food. This essay shows areas in food supply chain where food wasting can occur and economic and environmental effect of wasted food, and the occasions when registered dietitian and nutritionists can assist reduce food wastage in an infrastructure where we have consumer and...
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...Postharvest Losses and Food Waste: The Key Contributing Factors to African Food Insecurity and Environmental Challenges Excerpts from the stables of: Dr. Abiodun Elijah Obayelu Why Africa Urgently Needs to Act Now on Food Losses and Waste Food losses and waste are becoming increasingly critical to the African farmer and threats to sustainable food and environmental security. Analysis of the current food situation shows that almost 1.2 B people are going hungry in the world and one-third are found in Africa with many being farmers (Ajilore 2013). About 1.3 B tonnes of food waste has also been reported to be produced annually around the world at a direct economic cost of $750 B (FAO 2011, 2013a). A report by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO 2013a) shows that while about 54% of the world's food waste occurs 'upstream' during production, postharvest handling and storage, only 46% happens 'downstream,' at the processing, distribution and consumption stages. Food losses and waste are, therefore, not only causing major economic losses but also wreaking significant harm on the natural resources that humanity relies upon to feed. Going by the most recent estimates from FAO that 842 M people in the world do not eat enough to be healthy implies that one in every eight people on earth goes to bed hungry each night (FAO 2013b). It is projected that the world population will rise to 10.5 billion by 2050 (FAO 2011) with more than half of this growth expected to come...
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...Of the 29 places to eat on Cornell’s campus, I chose to evaluate the food waste practices at the Risley Dining Hall on North Campus, for this case study. Risley is one of the program houses and focuses on art and theater and is located right next to one of the major bus stops on north, across the street from Balch Residence Hall (an all girls’ freshman dorm hall). They are open for lunch and dinner everyday. I eat lunch at Risley almost every week day with my friends. In comparison to my experiences at some of the other dining halls on campus, Risley seems to have a quieter setting. Risley has one serving line, a salad bar, and a fruit/sides bar. There are round tables set up to seat about 4 people. Studies show that when an individual eats with a larger group of people, they are more likely to consume greater amounts of food, especially at a buffet-style dining area (citation). I think the small, round tables at Risley promote smaller lunch gatherings and thus, help cut back on the amount of food wasted. Several people eat alone while doing homework on their laptops. I have noticed that these individuals appear to eat less than those eating with a more social group of friends. There are also often adults getting lunch at Risley, more so than I...
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...Reduction of food waste in the Dutch catering sector | Author: Han Soethoudt [ Auteur: Han Soethoudt ] | Report no. 1335 | Title | Reduction of food waste in the catering sector | Author | Han Soethoudt | Number | Food and Biobased Research number 1335 | ISBN-number | ISBN no. 978-94-6173-336-8 | Date of publication | Date of publication August 2012 | Confidential | No | OPD-code | 6239021000 | Approved by | Toine Timmermans | | Wageningen UR Food & Biobased Research | P.O. Box 17 | NL-6700 AA Wageningen | Tel: +31 (0)317 480 084 | E-mail: info.fbr@wur.nl | Internet: www.wur.nl | | © Wageningen UR Food & Biobased Research, institute within the corporation Stichting Dienst Landbouwkundig Onderzoek (Foundation Service Agricultural Investigation) | Alle rechten voorbehouden. Niets uit deze uitgave mag worden verveelvoudigd, opgeslagen in een geautomatiseerd gegevensbestand of openbaar gemaakt in enige vorm of op enige wijze, hetzij elektronisch, hetzij mechanisch, door fotokopieën, opnamen of enige andere manier, zonder voorafgaande schriftelijke toestemming van de uitgever. De uitgever aanvaardt geen aansprakelijkheid voor eventuele fouten of onvolkomenheden.All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system of any nature, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher. The...
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...has an immense food waste problem, about fifty percent of all produce in the United States is thrown away and some sixty million tons every day. Almost all of the uneaten food from grocery stores, businesses and restaurants go to landfills, even though a large percentage of the food is edible and unexpired. Americans and businesses waste a great deal of food due to strict standards for food appearance, and the inconsistent food labeling system. If the federal government implements laws on the food labeling system, and educate the public about when food expires, food waste can dramatically decrease. Food that gets spilled or spoiled before reaching its final product or retail stage is called food loss. The U.S is wasting...
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...JFS R: Concise Reviews/Hypotheses in Food Science Food Packaging—Roles, Materials, and Environmental Issues KENNETH MARSH, PH.D., AND BETTY BUGUSU, PH.D. The Institute of Food Technologists has issued this Scientific Status Summary to update readers on food packaging and its impact on the environment. Keywords: food packaging, food processing dvances in food processing and food packaging play a primary role in keeping the U.S. food supply among the safest in the world. Simply stated, packaging maintains the benefits of food processing after the process is complete, enabling foods to travel safely for long distances from their point of origin and still be wholesome at the time of consumption. However, packaging technology must balance food protection with other issues, including energy and material costs, heightened social and environmental consciousness, and strict regulations on pollutants and disposal of municipal solid waste. Municipal solid waste (MSW) consists of items commonly thrown away, including packages, food scraps, yard trimmings, and durable items such as refrigerators and computers. Legislative and regulatory efforts to control packaging are based on the mistaken perception that packaging is the major burden of MSW. Instead, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) found that approximately only 31% of the MSW generated in 2005 was from packaging-related materials, including glass, metal, plastic, paper, and paperboard—a percentage that has remained...
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...aim to address the problem of needless food waste that occurs all around the world. Much of this waste can be attributed to the inefficiencies of the grocery shopping itself. For any number of reasons, shoppers purchase food in excess, or without a specific plan for how they will use a given item. A simplified example: suppose a shopper purchases a ripe tomato because it is being sold for a fair price, he enjoys tomatoes, and assumes he will use it in a dish soon. Over the course of the following week, however, the individual fails to consume the tomato. He dines out with friends, chooses to prepare meals that do not require tomatoes, or simply forgets he had purchased the tomato at all. The tomato spoils and he throws it out. He has not only misused his money, but he has disallowed the possibility for any other person consuming the tomato. Our customer feels upset at this waste. We hope to provide a solution for our customers that will reduce grocery buying inefficiencies and make our customers’ lives better. Our customer is the socially conscious grocery shopper. They are adults with middle to high income, and middle to high education level. Our product is best suited to individuals who do want to prepare food at home. Our customer is willing to change his grocery shopping habits in an effort to waste less food. The solution is Mela. Mela is a subscription service that makes the grocery buying more efficient and reducing food waste is its primary objective. Mela uses an algorithm...
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...The amount of waste the average American generates per year is truly staggering. Statistics suggest that Americans throw out enough paper or plastic cups and utensils every year to circle the equator 300 times. With so much waste generated annually, it is no wonder that many experts are calling for widespread adoption of zero-waste packaging. But what does zero-waste packaging look like? How important is it for Americans to move away from harmful plastics and chemicals and towards more eco-friendly consumer packaging? This article will address these important questions and many others through an inside look at the world of consumer packaging. What Does “Zero-Waste” Mean? Although the concept of “zero-waste” has been around since the 1970s, it hasn’t made the shift from theory to practice until recently. In essence, it refers to designing and producing materials so that harmful waste is eliminated from the production model and outputs can be reused for other productive processes. Ideally, the archetypical zero-waste production cycle would mimic natural cycles – where every part of the end product can be reused and nothing goes to waste. For instance, when a leaf falls from a tree in the forest and eventually dies, it does not become waste. It decomposes and eventually turns into nutrients to help other plants grow. The result is an endless cycle of growth, degeneration, decomposition, and regrowth once more. Implementing zero-waste to its fullest would mean ensuring a product...
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...Table of Content Q1 & Q2: Data Interpretation & Analysis ............................................................................ 1 Q3 & Q4: To Pack or Not To Pack ......................................................................................... 7 Recycling & Rewards .............................................................................................................. 9 Go Green to Gain “Greenback” ........................................................................................... 10 Tierra y Fuego – Earth (Land fill) and Fire (Combustion) ............................................... 13 Money, Money, Money........................................................................................................... 14 Cul-De-Sac .............................................................................................................................. 15 Leachate Attack...................................................................................................................... 16 Conclusion .............................................................................................................................. 17 Reference ................................................................................................................................ 18 Q1 & Q2: Data Interpretation & Analysis As shown in the table, anomaly data in year 1999, 2000, 2001, 2004, 2008, 2011 and 2012 is assumed to be unknown...
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...Supply Chain Management October 23, 2014 Case Study Analysis #2 Not only has reducing waste become more important for citizens across the world, companies are also invested in reducing the amount of waste they produce. This case study examines the food wrapping section of a UK Food Company, and ways in which resources can be best allocated to improve waste management. The wrapping section of the manufacturing process is particularly important because it plays a vital role in community the image and quality of the brand. The paper is based on using the lean tools approach and also looks into other methodology including value stream mapping. The following SWOT Analysis can provide insight into this particular UK Food Company so that measures can be taken to insure a reduction in waste. Strengths: • very diverse products that can run through the same production line including bread and sushi • the food wrapping successfully improves the brand image in the consumers eyes • improved efficiency of products running through the line (after techniques implemented) • higher customer satisfaction (after techniques implemented) • lead times reduced and kilograms of waste also reduced (after techniques implemented) Weaknesses: • Irregular maintenance performed on the machines • Unclean work area for employees • Machines that are defected reduce the number of wrapped food items • Employee’s had to be laid off (after techniques implemented) • Trust was...
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...owner I have to look in depth at every aspect of the business. One large place that always seems to be over looked is the actual waste of food the business takes on over time. I found an article called “Back of house”- focused study on food waste in fine dining: the case of Delish restaurants. This study shows a wide range of understanding food service kitchen practices, risk mitigation, and menu design just to name a few focuses. Where it all begins and ends As more and more people chose to eat out now the issue of food waste has gained more attention. The article states that in Canada there was over $2 billion worth of food waste in 2009. That is a huge loss for the industry but even larger for individual businesses as it is dived among them. Research has been focusing on portion sizes and how product mixes as parts of this waste. This makes me think of places such as buffets where you can eat all you want for a set price. While some may be a bit costly others seem far too cheap for the food that is consumed. People take advantage of this opportunity and waste a lot of food. They may get items to try and then don’t like and end up throwing them away or the amount of food consumed is not nearly covered by the cost of the meal. The researchers also believe that kitchen management, procurement practices, and menu design can lead to food waste. The researchers chose several approaches to obtain the needed information for this study. They conducted interview in different...
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